Tuesday, 18 March 2008

No prizes for coming third

The German magazine Partituren has asked 52 critics to name their current hottie. Top of the singers is Juan Diego Florez, best composer is Hans Werner Henze and fastest up-and-coming is Gustavo Dudamel. No surprises, there.

But when it comes to favourite orchestra, a large majority of critics plump for the Freiburg Baroque ensemble, followed at some distance by the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie of Bremen. In third place, with just three votes, stands the Berlin Philharmonic, supposedly champions of the world.

Well, a poll is a poll is a good way to fill six pages. But what jumped out at me from this survey was the breakdown which showed that critics who live in Berlin voted more than 2-1 for Freiburg against their local ensemble. These are people who hear Rattle & Co perform week in, week out. They don't seem too impressed. Perhaps they ought to tell us why.

Elsewhere in the mag, there is a long piece of hagiolatry on Herbert von Karajan by one of his misty-eyed biographers. Say what you like about the K brand, but in his time no German magazine would have dared to place his orchestra third to some baroque outfit and a chamber phil - not without Herbie's lawyers having the issue injuncted before it hit the newsstands. Those were the days...

Monday, 17 March 2008

The City of Montreal has announced today that it will continue to ensure the programming la Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur. See below for the press release. Consequently, according to Marie-Chantal Leclair, founder of the Facebook group to save the CHBP, Tuesday's schedule protest will no longer be necessary.

Official statement: MONTREAL, March 17 - At the end of a meeting with the representatives of the Québécois Council of music, the mayor of Montreal, Mr. Gérald Tremblay and Mrs. Catherine Sévigny, advisor associated with Culture and the Downtown area, reiterated the intention of the city of maintain the accessibility of the Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur. They also gave assurance that the programming of the venue will be maintained. "I am sensitive to the concerns of the cultural community and the importance which it has for this place of diffusion. We will take all the time required to examine [the issue] with all the stakeholders, and more particularly with the Quebec Music Council on how we can ensure the continuity of the mission of the Chapelle", declared the mayor Gérald Tremblay.

Sunday, 16 March 2008

Chapelle du Bon-Pasteur Protest Continues Tuesday

The movement to save the Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur (CHBP) will continue on Tuesday, March 18 at 11 AM at the downtown Sheraton Hotel in Montreal before the Montreal Board of Trade's luncheon celebrating the Conseil des Arts de Montréal's 2007 Grand Prix which recognizes the best arts organization of the year. The demonstration is being led by Marie-Chantal Leclair whose FACEBOOK group "Sauvons la programmation de la Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur!" has grown to over 800 members in 5 days.

Last Friday morning, the group organized its first grass-roots protest drawing about 100 to a meeting between Montreal Cultural Services officials and members of the Conseil québecois de la musique (CQM), which has also mounted its own efforts to reverse the decision to cancel programming at the Chapelle du Bon-Pasteur. The consensus of the CQM members at the meeting was that they did not accept the idea of cuts to things that are extraordinary, and that the CHBP was extraordinary in the way it functions and in it presents diverse musical styles to the public. The CQM's next step is a formal meeting with Mayor Gerald Tremblay to present its case.

Met in HD: Peter Grimes

The Met in HD season continued yesterday with a telecast of a new production of Peter Grimes. It replaced the 40-year old, completely realistic Tyrone Guthrie production that had served the Company well over the years. Some of my most memorable opera-going experiences involved that old production - Vickers as Grimes and Johanna Meier as Ellen Orford in 1984, and later performances involving Anthony Rolfe-Johnson and Ben Heppner. But stylistically the Guthrie production was really showing its age, so it was time that the Met retired it with a new one. The originally announced Grimes was tenor Neil Shicoff, whom I believe has sung it in Vienna. But somewhere along the way, Shicoff was replaced by the young American tenor Anthony Dean Griffey. Since I had not seen Shicoff as Grimes I can't say with authority, but frankly I can't imagine that he would be better than Griffey, who as far as I am concerned, was born to sing this role. I saw Griffey as Lennie in Of Mice and Men at Glimmgerglass in 1997, and I count that as one of the most transcendent operatic experiences of my life.

So it was with great anticipation that I attended the show yesterday. In a nutshell, the musical values were equal to, if not surpassing, my expectations. Griffey was magnificent as Grimes. Having seen Vickers in this role, I must say the Canadian set the standard by which I measure all subsequent Grimes. Griffey is certainly more youthful, more likable and less menacing - less savage - than Vickers. Griffey's high, clear, sweet tenor is simply a joy to the ear, his top more secure than Vickers, and head and shoulders above that of Robert Brubaker who sang it in Toronto a few years ago. Griffey's Grimes reminds me more of Heppner than Vickers's - beautifully sung and affectingly acted, and unusually sympathetic for an anti-hero.

Partnering Griffey was soprano Patricia Racette as Ellen Orford. Having seen her in a half dozen roles - among them Blanche, Tatiana and Elisabetta, I must say Ellen is probably her very best role. She totally embodies the character - I like her quiet strength and her humanity. Again, a rather youthful character that plays well against Griffey's youth. Vocally, other than a loss of focus at the extreme top once or twice, Racette sang wonderfully, her Embroidery Aria was exquisite.

The third principal, Balstrode, was assumed by baritone Anthony Michaels-Moore. I was slightly disappointed by him. I find an older singer works better in this role, in the mode of a Thomas Stewart for example. Physically and dramatically, Michaels-Moore lacked a commanding presence and vocally he didn't make a big impression. He was outsung by another baritone, the debuting Teddy Tahu Rhodes, whose golden-voiced Ned Keene and handsome stage presence oozed charisma at every turn. Grimes is really an ensemble opera, with some wonderfully detailed characterizations. Standouts in this production included Felicity Palmer, who sang strongly and was perfectly cast as Mrs. Sedley. Also excelelnt was the Auntie of Jill Grove, and John De Carlo as Swallow. The quartet for the women was a highlight of the performance. Donald Runnicles proved masterful on the podium, his conducting was a perfect balance of power and lyricism, achieving great clarity in the orchestration. The Storm music in Act One was incredible (if only it were matched by the action on stage, but more about that later). And I must say I haven't heard the Met chorus sounding so good in a very long time. For years, this chorus - particularly the women - had been the Achilles heel of the Company. With the arrival of Donald Palumbo, it has slowly but surely undergone a significant and long overdue transformation.

With its superb musical values, this Grimes would have been definitive if only the production itself measured up. I am sorry to say that it did not. Set designer Scott Pask's unit set is basically a soaring wall of wood panels that moves upstage and downstage, a structure that serves all three acts. It is placed quite far downstage throughout the opera, leaving a relatively small staging area, creating (perhaps deliberately) a claustrophobic and oppressive feeling. The problem with this design is its two-dimensionality. Despite the basic realism inherent in the structure, there is little that is truly realistic in the way it is used. During the storm scene for example, there is no suggestion of wind nor rain - not one person get wet! No howling of wind, no ruffled dresses. It stretches the imagination that this "wall" represents the town hall, the pub, and Grimes hut - it's really quite confusing for those new to the opera. The suggestion of scene change comes really only from the text and not from what one sees on stage. The singers and the large chorus are clustered close together up front, or perched behind various windows and doors on the multi-level structure - visually it creates a flatness that is much like a typical broadway musical, ultimately robbing the piece of its potential dramatic power. I couldn't help but compare the Doyle production with the excellent Tim Albery production for ENO that was also staged in Toronto several years ago. The latter has much more clever use of multimedia tricks to suggest the storm, and the staging for Grimes' hut - and the tragic fall of the apprentice - is much more effective. From this regard, the Doyle production falls flat, literally and figuratively. The saving grace is that the strong music values makes one overlook the design shortcomings. Perhaps some of the directorial and design elements could be altered for future revivals, although I am not holding my breath.

On to the telecast itself. Shown in only two cinemas at the Sheppard Grande - and the second cinema was not full - the size of the audience was probably the smallest of all the Met telecasts so far at this venue. It was hosted by Natalie Dessay, who spoke with an accent, but she was totally intelligible. And frankly, it was a nice break from the over-exposed Renee Fleming. The interviews were pretty much standard fare - principals, director, and designer. The most interesting segment was a live relay to Aldeburgh, England - Britten's hometown - where 250 people were watching the live telecast. The transmission itself had two very minor glitches - frozen picture, each lasting about two or three seconds, one occuring at a crucial moment when Grimes struck Ellen. The audience let out a collective gasp but fortunately the transmission resumed. There were the usual ads for upcoming telecasts, and understandably Ben Heppner's name was nowhere to be seen, now that he has officially withdrawn from the March 22 performance. Let's hope the Met finds a decent replacement for Heppner. We will soon find out in a week's time!

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La Scena Musicale is a monthly Canadian classical, opera, jazz and world music magazine published in English and French by La Scène musicale/The Music Scene, a non-profit charity dedicated to the promotion of music and the arts. La Scena Musicale's award-winning website SCENA.org has been a world leader of classical music and arts news since 1996. The LSM Blog is the place for commentary and news on music and the arts in Canada and around the world. Publisher: Wah Keung Chan; ISSN 1925-9700